How to Celebrate the Qingming Festival (2022)

The most visible Qingming Festival activity revolves around tomb sweeping, the ritual cleaning of gravesites to honor a family's ancestors. SkiptoMainContent 23 Mar2015 Share433TweetPin7440SharesTheQingmingFestival,alsoreferredtoasthePureBrightnessFestival,paysrespecttoancestorsandcelebratesthewarmingweatherofspring.It’satimeforhonoringthepastwithaspiritofcelebrationthatincludesspaceforbothreflectionandrenewal. MarkYourCalendars QingmingFestival2022isApril5,2022.IttakesplaceeveryyearonApril4or5onthefirstdayofthefifthsolartermoftheChinesecalendar. Hereisacollectionofeasyactivities,recipesandcraftswithstep-by-stepdirectionstohelpyourfamilyobservetheChineseholidaycommonlyreferredtoasTombSweepingDay. Jumpto:TheBasics|Activities|Recipes|Crafts|BuyingGuides ADVERTISEMENT TheBasics CelebratingtheQingmingFestivalhastwohalves,equallybalancedbetweensadnessandhappiness,deathandrebirth.Qingmingisgenerallyobservedquietlyamongfamilybyvisitingthegravesitesofrelativesandenjoyingtimeoutdoors.It’sawonderfultimetofondlysharestoriesaboutancestors,Chineseornot,andtogetthekidsoutsidetohike,flykitesorplantseeds. History&Folklore TheQingmingFestivaloccursasspringblooms,makingtheholidayaninterestingmixofsombertombsweepingandcelebratoryoutdooractivities.It’soneofthetwobigannualfestivalsdesignatedforthedead—theotheristheHungryGhostFestivalinthefall.ReadMore» TheOriginsofQingmingFestivalTraditions TheQingmingFestival’snamereferstothearrivalofspring(literally“pure”and“bright”),providingarefreshingcounterbalancetothesolemntaskoftombsweeping.Flykites,plantseedsandvisittheparktotaptheholiday’sspiritofrejuvenationandgrowth.ReadMore» ADVERTISEMENT Activities ThemostvisibleQingmingFestivalactivityrevolvesaroundtombsweeping,theritualcleaningofgravesitestohonorafamily’sancestors.Peoplecarefortheirrelativesintheafterlifebyvisitingatthecemetery,refreshingtheirtombstonesandmakingofferingsoffood,incenseandjosspaper.Oncetombsweepingiscomplete,familiespicnicatthecemeteryandcommonlyspendtheafternoonenjoyingoutdooractivitiesintheearlybloomingdaysofspring. HowtoPlanaTombSweepingCeremony TidyingfamilygravesitesisthemostimportantQingmingFestivaltradition,arespectfulfamilyobligationthatgetstotheheartofChinesefilialpiety.Symbolically,acleangravesiteletsyourrelativesknowthattheyremaininyourthoughts.ReadMore» Recipes Unlessyou’reobservingthecustomsoftheColdFoodFestival,therearen’tmanytraditionalfoodsspecificallyassociatedwiththeQingmingFestival.Becausetheholidayfocusesonhonoringfamilyancestors,theculinaryfocusisplacedonmakingtheirfavoritedishes.Theresultisanemphasisonhomestylefamilyfavorites,mealsthatcanbetransportedeasilyandenjoyedoutsideafterthetombsweepingceremony. HowtoMakeRoastPork Roastpork,alongwithroastduckandcharsiu,iswidelyavailablefromChinatownBBQshops.It’safamiliarsymbolofneighborhoodliving,comfortfoodthat’sperfecttoserveataQingmingFestivalpicnic.ReadMore» HowtoMakeaWholeWhiteCutChicken AwholewhitecutchickenisastapleofChinesereunionmeals,whichmakesitespeciallyfittingtoserveduringtheQingmingFestival.Thechickenrepresentshappiness,healthandpurity,whileservingitwholesymbolizescompletenessandfamilyunity.ReadMore» ADVERTISEMENT Crafts WorkingwithjosspaperduringtheQingmingFestivalisaneasywaytointroducethemeaningofritualpaperofferingstoyourkids.Burningceremonialjosspaperismeanttocareforancestorsintheafterlifeandsendthemtheluxuriestheylackedwhileliving. HowtoFoldJossPaperIngots Foldingjosspaperaroundthekitchentablecanhelpyouexplaintheimportanceofsendingmoney,foodandothersuppliestoancestorswhohavepassedaway.UseourguidetofoldjosspaperintothegoldingotsthatwereusedasancientChinesecurrency.ReadMore» BuyingGuides PriortotheQingmingFestival,you’llwanttopickupjosspaper,incensesticksandfoodforyourceremonialofferings,butthat’sallyou’llreallyneed.TheQingmingFestivalisaquiet,family-focusedholidaywithoutelaboratedecorationsorpubliccelebrations. HowtoBuyJossPaper TheChineseburnjosspapertosendancestorsmoneyandmaterialgoodsintheafterlife.UseourguidetolearnhowtousejosspaperduringtheQingmingFestival,alongwithhowtoshopforthethreemostcommontypesavailable.ReadMore» IhopeyouhaveagreattimecelebratingtheQingmingFestivalthisyearwiththeseeasyactivities,recipesandcrafts.Pleasecommentbelowifthereareadditionalresourcesyouwouldliketoseeaddedtothesite! HT:PhotobyTheNewYorkTimes. Share433TweetPin7440Shares MoreFromChineseAmericanFamily AboutTheAuthorHi!I’mWes,abiracialChineseAmericandadlivinginOakland,California,wholeftthetechnologyworldwhenmysonwasborntoservethiswonderfullydiversecommunityofChineseAmericanfamilies.Workwithme» GetOurHomestyleFamilyCookingGuide BysigningupfortheChineseAmericanFamilynewsletter.Thenreceivefamily-friendlyactivity,recipeandcraftideasthroughouttheyear! 16Responses TherearegettinglessandlessChinesefamilyhavingtheirlovedonesburied,especiallyinthecities.IalwaysgotothebeachwithmymumandsisteronQingMingfestival.Wegothereandscattersomeflowerpetalsatthesea.Wejustrememberourbelovedonesandprayfortheirsouls. Infact,therearealsosomeChinesefamilieswhohavetheirlovedonesburiedinmyhometown.However,theydon’twanttoperformanyQingMingmemorialanymoreastheydon’tseeitasnecessaryortheirreligionforbidsthem. Thanksforsharingyourexperience,Raymond.ThisbalancebetweennewandoldissomethingIhearaboutfrequentlywhendiscussingQingMingtraditions.Whatcitiesareyourreferringto?InChinaortheUnitedStates?~Wes Myfamilystillperforms“rites”duringQingMinghereintheUS.B/Courfamily(bothmaternalandpaternal)hasalwayslived“away”fromtheancestralgraves(evenbeforeimmigratingtotheUS),theriteswerealwaysimportant. TheweekendoforbeforeQingMingwemaketheChaoAoGuiandSpringEggRolls.Mydad’ssideofthefamilyalwaysboughtthesestaplesinshops/practicedcoldfoodtraditions.Mymom’ssideofthefamilybelievescookingbringsthefamilycloserbeforegrieving.(Naturallymyfamilycooksduringthisholiday)–bothsidesbelievethisisthe“only”timetorememberandre-grievelostfamily. OurritesforthedayofQingMing:Wedigoutthepaperofferingsfromstorage(replenishingatthestoresasnecessary),cleanouttheburningvesselsandsweepoffthefrontsteps.Nearduskwelight3incense(nomore,nolessregardlessofextraattendees)andpraytomypaternalfamilyplaque.Thenburnthepaperofferingsonthefrontporch.Wewatcheverythingburnoutbeforesealingtheventsonthevesselthenheadinsidefordinner.(Theeldestmaleofthefamilyisresponsibleforbringingintheburningvessel–alltheashesstayinthevessel.) Nothingformal,butit’sastrictpracticewehavealwaysupheld(unlesssomeoneisdesperatelysick…inwhichcase,wedoNOTburnpaperofferings–todiscouragevisitingghosts?🤔) HiCatherine,welcometothesiteandthankyouforsharingyourpreciousfamilytradition.It’swonderfultoreadyourreflection.~Wes VeryUseful Quitewelcome,Juan.Thanksforstoppingby!~Wes thanksforhelpingmewithmyessay You’rewelcome,Ian.Gladyoufoundwhatyouneeded!~Wes Thankyouforsharingthis.IteachEnglishtoChinesenationalsandIenjoylearningaboutthedifferenttraditionsandholidaysthatmystudentscelebrate. That’sgreat,Marya.I’mgladthatyou’vemadethateffort!~Wes Thispostingwasbothbeautifulandexplanatory.WewereattendingafamilyfuneralyesterdayandinthenextrowbegantheChineseportionofthecemetery.(WhytheyareseparateIhavenoidea!)Thereweremultiplefamiliesburningjosspaperandsweepingtheirlovedonesplots.SuchatimehonoredtraditionandI’mgladtoseeitwasstillbeingcarriedoutinUnion,NJ.Itwasabeautifulsunny,mildday,althoughwindy,day.Mycousinsharedthispostforustoread.Traditionsareourtiestothepast,longmaytheylive! HiSandy,thanksforyourkindwordsandforsharingyourexperience.Icalledthecemeterytodaytoinquireandlearnedthattherearededicatedsectionsavailablefordifferentfaithsandnationalitiestoprovidespaceforvarioustraditions,ifdesiredbythefamily.~Wes Thanksforsharingsuchaforum. ImanAustralianbutchinesebornandgrewupmostofmylifeinSydney.AlthoughIgrewdoingthesetraditionalfestivities,Ineverknewwhatthehistorywasaboutthem,norwereinterested. Itisonlynow,thatasIgetolderandwithyoungchildren,thatIhavere-connectedwithmyheritagemoretobeabletoexplainitssignificancetomykids..andmoresofortheirhomework!:p Wonderful!Sogladthesitecouldhelpyou!~Wes Thankyoufortheinformation.Icameacrossyourwebsiteafterreadingtheshortstoryentitled‘ThePaperMenagerie’byKenLiuwhichIwillbestudyingwithmysecondaryschoolpupilsasIwantedtoknowmoreaboutQingming. Wonderful!Thankyouforcheckingin,Harmony.~Wes LeaveaReplyCancelreplyYouremailaddresswillnotbepublished.Requiredfieldsaremarked*CommentName* Email* Website Savemyname,email,andwebsiteinthisbrowserforthenexttimeIcomment. Δ Hi!I'mWes,abiracialChineseAmericandadlivinginOakland,California,wholeftthetechnologyworldwhenmysonwasborntoservethiswonderfullydiversecommunityofChineseAmericanfamilies.Workwithme» Searchfor: ChineseHolidays2022 Date Holiday February1 ChineseNewYear February15 LanternFestival March4 BlueDragonFestival April5 QingmingFestival June3 DragonBoatFestival August4 QixiFestival August12 HungryGhostFestival September10 Mid-AutumnFestival October4 DoubleNinthFestival December21 DongzhiFestival MostPopularPosts HowtoCelebratetheHungryGhostFestival HowtoBuyandBurnJossPaper:ACompleteGuide HowtoPreparefortheHungryGhostFestival TheUltimateGuidetoChineseBabyGifts TheChineseAmericanFamilyHolidayGiftGuide HowtoCelebratetheQingmingFestival HowtoPlanaChineseNewYearReunionDinner RecentCommentsWesRadezonHowToMakeAWholeWhiteCutChickenTerrific,I'msogladtohear,Leah!Igenerallydunkitintheicebath,thenthemeatisroom...WesRadezonHowToMakeCoconutDessertSoupByweight!ValonHowToMakeCoconutDessertSoupIsthe31/2ozbyweightorvolume?LeahonHowToMakeAWholeWhiteCutChickenThankyoufortherecipe,Isawityearsagoandmadeitquietafewtimes.Insteadofladling...WesRadezonHowToMakeTraditionalPorkDumplingsHiEmily,panfrythemforthesameamountoftime,thenadd2minutestothesteamingtime.~Wes...EmilyonHowToMakeTraditionalPorkDumplingsWhatwouldbethecookingtimeforpanfryingthemfromfrozen?Orwouldyouletthemthawfirst?Thanks!...